Take a small planter bin (you know the planter boxes that are round and like
6" round by about 4" deep - I think they are called pots ;-) ) and fill them
with sand, then add some vegetable oil, and mush it around abit so that all
the sand is coated. Then when you are done with your tools, just stick them
in the pot, this will keep them from rusting. If I remember correctly I saw
this on a Martha Stewart show ages ago, and I've yet to have a rusty tool
since. I even use bigger pots to accomodate my shovels too.


"Heidi" wrote in message
...
Hi,

Does anyone have any recommendations for cleaning pruning shears? After
I cut back much of my boitritis ridden JFK, I dipped my pruners into
straight bleach, wiped off the excess moisture, and left them in the
open position in my garage. The next day my pruners were entirely
rusted. I don't mind the aesthetics, however I doubt this was very good
for my pruners. Maybe it was all in my mind, but I immediately felt as
if they were not as sharp once they rusted.

Should I water down the bleach? Store the pruners inside ( I think the
humidity level in my garage is pretty high--I once tried to store my
gardening gloves in a zip lock bag--the next day they were covered with
mold!).

Thanks for any tips!
Heidi

P.S. The JFK has bounced back and is just starting to produce new
healthy blooms. I first cut back the diseased growth and sprayed
Daconil on what little was left of my plant. The Daconil did not seem
to nip the boitritis in it's spotty bottom, so I then tried HALT. The
HALT did the trick and fast.